free
TUESDAY
march 21, 2017 high 47°, low 20°
t h e i n de p e n de n t s t u de n t n e w s pa p e r of s y r a c u s e , n e w yor k |
N • Leading state
dailyorange.com
P • Dream team
Rex Tillerson, the former CEO of ExxonMobil, is now the U.S. Secretary of State. Tillerson had no experience holding office prior to his appointment. Page 3
Graduate students teamed up to produce “Sustainacuse,” an upcoming exhibit that will allow attendees to experience an ethereal environment. Page 11
S • Record scratch
UConn ended Syracuse’s season for the second year in a row behind a record-tying performance. The Huskies also sent home two program legends. Page 16
men’s basketball 1
Lydon reportedly leaving SU
UCONN 94, 8 SYRACUSE 64
INEVITABLE
By Connor Grossman senior staff writer
ALEXIS PETERSON hugs Syracuse head coach Quentin Hillsman late in the Orange’s 94-64 season-ending loss to Connecticut on Monday night in Storrs, Connecticut. Peterson’s SU career ended with the loss. evan jenkins staff photographer
Undefeated UConn ends Orange’s season for 2nd straight year By Matthew Gutierrez asst. sports editor
S
TORRS, Conn. — To prepare for the four-time defending national champions, Syracuse head coach Quentin Hillsman didn’t sleep the past two nights. He studied hours of game film and scouting reports in a quest for completing the improbable: upsetting Connecticut, winners of 108 straight games.
Syracuse never had a chance. The shocks came one after the other after SU’s early 3-2 lead evaporated. In its 94-64 victory, Connecticut broke the Syracuse full-court press as if it was hardly there. All UConn’s players posed a threat from deep, which sucked the Syracuse 2-3 zone out and left open lanes for cutters. They methodically set up one another for 3-pointers on the wings and high-low passes for easy layups. Kia Nurse keyed UConn’s offensive display, scoring 29
points on 9-of-12 shooting from deep. No. 1 overall seed Connecticut (34-0, 16-0 American Athletic) hasn’t lost since November 2014. This season, despite losing its top three players to the 2016 WNBA Draft, the Huskies reloaded and went undefeated. UConn looked every part of a four-time defending national champion in handling No. 8 seed Syracuse (22-11, 11-5 Atlantic Coast) Monday night in Gampel Pavilion see uconn page 14
state
Lawmakers move closer to legalizing Uber By Satoshi Sugiyama asst. news editor
A New York State Assembly bill currently under consideration could allow ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft to operate in the upstate New York area — potentially as early as this summer. Assemblyman Kevin Cahill (D-NY) along with 20 co-sponsors, introduced the Assembly bill, A.06661, on March 10. New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo unveiled his own ride-hailing services expansion plan during his State of State tour earlier this year, while the New York State Senate passed its own bill in February.
The key difference between the Assembly legislation, the Senate’s bill and Cuomo’s plan is that the Assembly legislation gives local municipalities more control over regulating ride-hailing services, Cahill said. By giving authority to local communities, Cahill said communities can make their own decision on the necessity of introducing ride-haling services into their transportation systems. If a community wants to attract ridehailing services, for example, it may create less regulation at its own discretion. The Senate’s bill, on the other hand, would establish a statewide
ride-hailing regulatory framework. Assemblyman John McDonald III (D-NY), co-sponsor of the Assembly bill, said the Assembly’s bill is merely a statement of interest. The Senate, the Assembly and governor need to negotiate on making one final bill that would legalize ride-hailing services upstate. That would need to be approved and included in the governor’s budget, which is due on April 1. If that process works out, ride-hailing services could begin to operate in upstate New York on July 1, McDonald said. In June 2016, the Senate passed legislation that would have brought ride-hailing services to
upstate New York, but debates over ride-hailing insurance policies stalled the bill in the Assembly. “I think we all understand that this is a new technology that is something that our constituents would like to see available to them, so I think we are just trying to get there and put things that we think important in the bill,” said Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli (D-NY), another co-sponsor of the Assembly bill, who represents the University Hill and downtown Syracuse area. Like the most recently passed Senate bill, the current Assembly bill would establish a Transportation see uber page 7
Tyler Lydon didn’t take long to decide his basketball future. The dynamic sophomore forward will sign with an agent and enter the 2017 NBA Draft, according to Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. After recording his ninth double-double of the season in the Orange’s season-ending loss to Mississippi on Saturday, Lydon didn’t comment when asked about his future. It has long been speculated that he would leave for the NBA after this season, including by head coach Jim Boeheim. Several NBA Draft projections have Lydon going as a late first-round pick. At a press conference on Monday, Boeheim said he met with Lydon around 1 p.m. and he had not yet signed with an agent. Players can retain NCAA eligibility by declaring for the NBA Draft until April 23, with the ability to withdraw until May 24. But signing with an agent immediately forfeits a player’s remaining NCAA eligibility.
6
Sophomore Tyler Lydon’s decision to enter the NBA Draft makes it six consecutive years that a Syracuse player has left as an underclassman
Boeheim cautioned Lydon about jumping into the NBA Draft now, knowing he lacked the “monster year” it would’ve taken for him to get lottery pick consideration. “He didn’t demonstrate this year that he can be a lottery pick,” Boeheim said, “but next year I know he can be. That’s what I told him. I think he can come back here and demonstrate that he can be a lottery pick. “I think it’s a better way to go to the NBA. You make money, they draft you high, they play you. Half the picks between 20-30 are out of the league within three years.” The 6-foot-9 forward refused all season to hint about his future, saying he didn’t ever glance at how often his name popped up on mock draft boards. Instead Lydon always pointed his focus back toward the current season, which he finished averaging 13.2 points per game and a team-high 8.6 rebounds per game. But Lydon dipped in and out of
see lydon page 14